South University offers 2 Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP) pathways, both leading to the MSN:
- MSN AGPCNP (BSN or existing MSN entry)
- RN to MSN AGPCNP (ADN, foreign-equivalent ADN, or diploma plus a bachelor’s degree)
The defining feature is scheduling access. South runs 5- and 10-week online sessions with a new quarter start roughly every five weeks, admits at a 2.5 GPA, and requires no GRE and no letters of reference. It also publishes a complete cost sheet with a stated all-in total, which few AGPCNP programs do.
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN AGPCNP | $37.0K-$38.3K | 70 instructional weeks (~1.5 years) | 56-58 quarter credits |
| RN to MSN AGPCNP | ~$49.2K | 110 instructional weeks (~2.5 years) | 104-106 quarter credits at South |
Tuition above is tuition only. South’s official cost sheet puts the all-in total at $41,657 for the MSN and $53,685 for the RN to MSN once fees, textbooks, and the graduation fee are added. The credit ranges are not our estimates; South publishes conflicting figures.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MSN (BSN entry); RN to MSN |
| Format | 100% online coursework via Brightspace; in-person practicum only |
| Campus Visits | None published for either AGPCNP track |
| Clinical Hours | Not published by South University |
| Clinical Placement | Stated as arranged by South for the RN to MSN; not addressed on the MSN page |
| Practicum Structure | 3 practicum courses plus an NP role transition capstone |
| Progression Gate | NSG6021 Pre-Clinical Evaluation, pass/fail, before any practicum |
| Population Focus | Adolescence through frail elderly, including reproductive health |
| Minimum GPA | 2.5 to enter; RN to MSN needs 3.0 to reach graduate courses |
| Start Terms | Roughly 10 quarter starts per year |
| Tuition | $660 per quarter credit graduate; $255 undergraduate |
| Accreditation | CCNE |
| State Limits | South does not enroll residents of 22 states and territories |
Note on credit weight. South uses quarter credits. A 56 to 58 quarter-credit MSN is roughly equivalent to 37 to 39 semester credits, which is normal for an NP master’s. Do not compare these totals directly against semester-credit programs.
MSN AGPCNP (BSN Entry)
Tuition runs $36,960 to $38,280 depending on which published credit total is correct, with an official all-in cost of $41,657. South lists the program at 70 instructional weeks, roughly a year and a half once scheduled breaks are added. Entry requires a BSN or an MSN with a 2.5 GPA and an unencumbered RN license.
MSN Curriculum
The curriculum has three layers. A 12-credit MSN foundation covers the APRN role, health policy, and research methods. The AGPCNP specialization then delivers the three Ps (NSG5003 pathophysiology, NSG6005 pharmacology, NSG6020 assessment), followed by two clinical decision-making courses and three sequential practicums.
Two features stand out. NSG6021 Pre-Clinical Evaluation is a zero-credit standardized exam that works as a hard gate: fail it and you must pass NSG6023 Nurse Practitioner Enhancement, a 4-credit course adding about $2,640 in tuition, before entering practicum.
The final course, NSG6998_A, builds certification-exam diagnostics into the course grade and mandates remediation for students who fail twice. The reproductive health practicum (NSG6330) is also unusual for an adult-gerontology track, since many AGPCNP programs fold gynecologic primary care into a general adult rotation rather than dedicating a full 6-credit practicum to it.
Core courses, in quarter credits: NSG5000 Role of the Advanced Practice Nurse (4), NSG6002 Health Policy and Health Promotion (4), NSG6101 Nursing Research Methods (4), NSG5003 Advanced Pathophysiology (4), NSG6005 Advanced Pharmacology (4), NSG6020 Advanced Health and Physical Assessment (6), NSG6021 Pre-Clinical Evaluation (0, pass/fail), NSG6205 and NSG6206 Decision Making for the Advanced Practice Nurse I and II (4 each), NSG6320 Practicum I Adult and Gerontology (6), NSG6330 Practicum II Reproductive Health (6), NSG6340 Practicum III Adult Health and Gerontology (6), NSG6998_A Transition to the Professional NP Role (6).
Conflict: the catalog page lists the specialization as 44 credits and the degree as 56, but its own course table sums to 46 and the page footer reads “Total Credits 58.” The program page, the program flyer, and the cost sheet all use 56.
The itemized course list is the only figure that survives arithmetic, so 58 is the safer planning number, and $1,320 more in tuition than the cost sheet assumes. Confirm the binding total in writing before enrolling.
MSN Clinical Requirements
Clinical work runs through four courses: three practicums plus the NP role transition capstone. All are precepted in person by an approved preceptor in the student’s local area, and every practicum must be passed in full or repeated in full.
South University does not publish a total clinical clock-hour requirement for the AGPCNP program on its program pages, catalog pages, course descriptions, or program flyer. National certification through AANPCB or ANCC requires at least 500 supervised direct patient care hours, and South does not state where its program sits relative to that floor. Ask admissions for the number in writing.
Placement responsibility is stated inconsistently too. The RN to MSN page says the practicum “will be arranged by South University.” The MSN page makes no such statement and carries only the university-wide disclaimer that in-person components exist and flexibility cannot be guaranteed.
The two tracks share an identical practicum sequence, so the difference is unlikely to be substantive, but it is unresolved in South’s own materials. Placement support is the single largest source of delay and attrition in online NP programs, which makes this worth settling before any deposit.
South does charge a $525 nonrefundable practicum evaluation fee per practicum course and a $212 clinical compliance tracking fee covering background check, drug test, and immunization tracking. Both confirm an active affiliation-agreement and compliance apparatus behind the practicum.
MSN Admissions
- BSN from an accredited institution with a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher, or an MSN/MN from an accredited institution
- Valid, unencumbered RN license in every state or territory where the applicant is licensed, including the state where all assignments and clinical rotations are completed
- Official transcripts from every institution attended, due within 5 weeks of the class start date under the Conditional Acceptance policy
- Completed application, with no application fee
- No GRE, no letters of reference, no interview, no minimum work experience
- Residence in a state where South enrolls students
The 2.5 GPA floor sits well below the 3.0 most AGPCNP programs require. The offsetting rule is that every graduate nursing course requires a grade of B or higher to progress, so the program filters on performance after admission rather than before it.
The conditional acceptance structure is worth understanding. You can begin classes before transcripts arrive, but failing to produce them within five weeks puts enrollment at risk after you have already started paying.
RN to MSN AGPCNP
Tuition runs about $49,200, made up of $36,960 in graduate credits and $12,240 in undergraduate credits, with an official all-in cost of $53,685. South lists the program at 110 instructional weeks, roughly two and a half years. It serves RNs holding an ADN, an equivalent foreign ADN, or a diploma plus a non-nursing bachelor’s degree.
RN to MSN Curriculum
The program awards a block transfer of 78 quarter credits of general education plus 45 undergraduate nursing transfer credits. That is 123 of the 227-credit total before the student takes a single South course.
What remains is 48 undergraduate credits at South (eight bridge nursing courses, two health-science electives, two general education electives) followed by the identical MSN foundation and AGPCNP specialization that BSN-entry students take. The bridge courses are conventional RN-to-BSN content: assessment for RNs, nursing research, informatics, teaching and learning, leadership, health policy, and health promotion.
The health-science elective pool includes Gerontological Nursing and Epidemiology and Disease Control, either of which reinforces the AGPCNP focus at no extra cost over the alternatives.
Progression rule that matters most. A 2.5 GPA gets you admitted, but a 3.0 cumulative GPA is required to enter graduate-level nursing courses. Students below 3.0 at that checkpoint may be moved into the RN to BSN program and must then reapply for the MSN, which turns an apparent bridge program into a possible two-degree detour.
Conflict: the RN to MSN AGPCNP program page headline reads “62 Credits,” which matches the FNP specialization total of 12 plus 50 rather than anything in the AGPCNP plan. The catalog lists 44 specialization credits and 227 total, while the specialization course table again sums to 46.
RN to MSN Clinical Requirements
Clinical requirements are identical to the BSN-entry MSN: NSG6320, NSG6330, and NSG6340, plus NSG6998_A, all gated behind NSG6021. The undergraduate bridge courses carry no clinical component.
This is the track where South explicitly states that the practicum will be arranged by the university in a local clinical setting. If placement support drives your decision, that sentence is the strongest written commitment South publishes for either pathway, and it is worth asking whether it applies equally to BSN-entry students.
RN to MSN Admissions
- Associate degree in nursing from an accredited institution, an equivalent accredited foreign ADN, or a nursing diploma plus a bachelor’s degree
- Cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher for admission
- Cumulative GPA of 3.0 to progress into graduate nursing courses
- Valid, unencumbered RN license in every state where licensed, including the state of assignment completion
- Official transcripts from every institution attended, within 5 weeks of class start
- No GRE and no letters of reference
- Residence in a state where South enrolls students
Tuition
South charges a flat rate regardless of residency, which removes the in-state and out-of-state variable entirely.
- Graduate nursing courses: $660 per quarter credit
- Undergraduate-level RN to MSN courses: $255 per quarter credit
- Technology fee: $20 per quarter credit
- Digital textbooks: $15 per quarter credit, with an opt-out
- Registration fee: $25 per term
- Practicum evaluation fee: $525 per practicum course, nonrefundable
- Clinical compliance tracking for MSN students: $212 initial
- Graduation fee: $250
South’s Program Cost Sheet, dated March 18, 2026, publishes these totals.
| Item | MSN AGPCNP | RN to MSN AGPCNP |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $36,960 | $49,200 |
| Technology fee | $1,120 | $1,120 |
| Program fees | $2,487 | $2,275 |
| Digital textbooks | $840 | $840 |
| Graduation fee | $250 | $250 |
| Approximate total | $41,657 | $53,685 |
Three cautions apply. The figures assume 56 graduate credits, so a 58-credit requirement adds about $1,320 in tuition plus $70 in fees.
The technology-fee and textbook lines equal exactly $20 and $15 per credit applied to 56 credits, which means the RN to MSN totals appear not to charge those fees on the 48 undergraduate credits, potentially understating that pathway by roughly $1,680. The sheet also does not itemize “program fees,” though the amounts are consistent with four practicum evaluation fees plus compliance and registration charges.
Neither total includes future tuition increases, travel to clinical sites, licensure or certification exam fees, or remediation costs such as NSG6023. See South’s current tuition page and its fee schedule.
Financial Aid
- Graduate Academic Merit Scholarship: $50 per credit hour for online graduate students who establish and maintain a 3.50 South University cumulative GPA, calculated after two quarters. On 56 credits that is roughly $2,800, cutting the effective rate to about $610 per credit. This is the most valuable award available to AGPCNP students.
- Alumni Grant and Alumni Transfer Grant: up to $3,000 at the master’s level for South University graduates pursuing an additional degree, which is directly relevant to South RN-to-BSN alumni.
- Bridge Forward Grant: RN to MSN students are explicitly excluded.
- St. Thomas MSN Transfer Grant: reduces the rate to $561 per credit for eligible former St. Thomas University MSN students, including those entering the AGPCNP specialization.
Grants cannot be combined with one another. See full grant terms and eligibility.
Why Choose This AGPCNP Program?
Best suited for: working RNs in one of South’s 30 approved states who need frequent start dates, a below-3.0 undergraduate GPA accommodated at entry, and a published all-in price, and who can accept unpublished clinical hour totals.
Entry timing you will not find at cohort programs. South’s online calendar shows a new quarter start roughly every five weeks, about ten entry points a year. At AGPCNP programs with a single fall cohort, a missed deadline costs twelve months.
A genuinely low admissions bar, with the filter moved downstream. No GRE, no references, no interview, no required work experience, and a 2.5 GPA floor make this one of the most accessible AGPCNP entry points available. Every graduate nursing course still requires a B, NSG6021 must be passed before any clinical work, and RN to MSN students must reach 3.0 to advance.
Published cost, with caveats you have to read. Most nursing schools publish a per-credit rate and stop. South publishes tuition, technology fees, textbook charges, program fees, and a stated total for each pathway, though that transparency is undercut by the credit-total inconsistency and by fee lines that appear to omit the RN to MSN undergraduate credits.
The two disclosures that are missing. South publishes no AGPCNP clinical clock-hour total and gives inconsistent accounts of who secures clinical placements. For a fully online NP program, where preceptor acquisition is the most common cause of delay, those are the two most important variables and the two the university does not put in writing.
No doctoral or certificate AGPCNP route. South’s DNP is post-master’s only and carries no NP population focus; it is a leadership and quality-improvement doctorate. Its online post-graduate certificates cover Nurse Educator and Nursing Informatics only, so there is no BSN-to-DNP AGPCNP option and no post-graduate AGPCNP certificate for certified NPs adding a population focus.
One sequencing note is useful here. DNP admission requires documentation of post-baccalaureate clinical hours, and applicants who earned an MSN as a nurse practitioner are exempt from the practice immersion courses, so an AGPCNP graduate of South’s MSN could complete the DNP in 51 credits rather than 67.
The Verdict
The strongest case for South belongs to two applicants. First, the RN with an ADN who wants a single continuous path to NP practice and can clear the 3.0 progression checkpoint, since the 123-credit block transfer and the stated $53,685 total make this a well-documented bridge. Second, the BSN-prepared RN with a sub-3.0 GPA who has been screened out elsewhere and needs to start within weeks rather than next fall.
Compare other programs if you need a verified clinical hour count and a written placement guarantee before committing, if you are pursuing a BSN-to-DNP or a post-graduate AGPCNP certificate, or if you live in one of the 22 jurisdictions where South does not enroll residents. Cost-sensitive applicants should also note that public university online AGPCNP programs frequently land below $41,657, usually with narrower start windows and higher GPA requirements.
Accreditation and Certification
South University’s BSN, MSN, and DNP programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), and the university holds institutional accreditation from SACSCOC. The AGPCNP curriculum is built to NONPF core competencies, and graduates are eligible to sit for national certification through AANPCB or ANCC. South does not guarantee certification, licensure, or employment.
State availability is a real constraint. South’s catalog states that its AGPCNP curriculum meets licensure requirements in 30 states, and that South does not enroll residents of Alaska, Arkansas, California, DC, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Verify your own state on South’s current state licensure determination page before applying, since these lists change. One caution when reading that chart: the AGPCNP row’s certification narrative describes the Family Nurse Practitioner program rather than the AGPCNP program, so confirm your state directly with admissions.